Ring and traveler assembly

ABSTRACT

A ring and traveler assembly for use in a spinning or twisting frame including spaced ring members that define a slot therebetween, a traveler having a projecting portion extending through the slot and being mounted on flanges of the ring members, one ring member being movable relative to the other to increase the size of the slot therebetween, thereby enabling the traveler to be easily mounted between the ring members.

United States Patent 1111 3,583,146

[72] Inventor Del-rel V. Myers 1,868,574 7/1932 Hofmann 57/120Llncoln,R.l. 2,335,121 11/1943 Jerome 57/125 [21] Appl. No. 805,3982,831,313 4/1958 Burns et a1 57/125X [22] Filed Mar. 10,1969 3,056,25010/1962 Backus 57/119 [45] Patented June 8, 1971 FOREIGN PATENTS [73]Ass'gnee 956,162 7/1949 France 57/120 apaflimeres' 919,990 11/1954Germany 57/125 Primary Examiner-John Petrakes Attorney-Salter &Michaelson [54] RING AND TRAVELER ASSEMBLY 5 Clalms, 3 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.Cl 57/119,

57/125 ABSTRACT: A ring and traveler assembly for use in a [51] Int.spinning o twisting frame including spaced ring members that Dolh 7/60define a slot therebetween, a traveler having a projecting por- Fleld ofSearch 1. 19, lion extending through the slot and being mounted onflanges of the ring members, one ring member being movable relative [56]References cued to the other to increase the size of the slottherebetween, UNITED STATES PATENTS thereby enabling the traveler to beeasily mounted between 743,138 11/19 O 3 1 3 o otl 57/1 19 the ringmembers.

1 I l 34 g 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 58 /8 PATENTED JUN 8197! FIG.3

HNVENTOR DERREL V. MYERS BY MrM ATTORNEYS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to a ring and traveler assembly and hasparticular application in a spinning or twisting frame, the travelermember that forms a part of the assembly defining a guide for a yarnthat is being removed from a bobbin for processing.

The ring traveler commonly in use heretofore was usually constructed inthe form of a bail having inturned projecting portions that engagedbeneath the edges of a flange on the upper edge ofa spinner ring. lnthis form of ring traveler, the thread being removed from a bobbin,passed under the bail, and supported the bail as the bail followed thespinner ring support in circular relation and as the thread was removedfrom the bobbin. Such constructions have not been found to be verysatisfactory since the thread continually pressed against the inturnedends of the bail thereby creating a force and causing friction and wearthat eventually resulted in resistance of movement of the ring traveleron the spinner ring. In such prior known constructions, the bail had atendency to drop when not in use so that when the spinner ring wasstarted up, the ring traveler was snapped upwardly into frictionalengagement with the spinner ring that either caused the bail to break orresulted in overstraining thereof. The bail constructions as knownheretofore also had a tendency to break when being forced over thespinner ring upon mounting of the bail in its position of use. Further,because of the need for forcing the inturned ends ofthe bail over thespinner ring, the configuration of the ball was sometimes changed to theextent that proper movement of the bail on its track was prevented.

Some efforts have been made heretofore to vary the con structions ofthese ring travelers, but normally they have con.- sisted only of ameans for seeming to the traveler some device for receiving the yarn asit was removed fromthe bobbin, Thus in the prior known travelerconstructions, they were still snapped in place over the ring carrier byforcing the inturned ends thereof over the flange of the spinner ring,which eventually resulted in misalignment or breaking of the traveler.

SUMMARY OF THE lNVENTlON The ring and traveler assemblyas embodied inthe present invention has application in a spinning or twisting frameand includes a first ring member from which a second ring member isspaced in coaxial relation with respect thereto. The spacing between thering members defines an annular slot and a traveler member havingaprojecting portion received in the slot is mounted on the ring membersand is slidable relative thereto, the projection portion being freelymovable within the annular slot. The ring members are secured by afastening member in their spaced apart position, but may be urged apartagainst the action of a spring when the projecting portion of thetraveler member is inserted within the annular slot. The spacing betweenthe ring members may also be varied by means of a spacer member locatedtherebetween so that a variety of different size traveler members may beincorporated in the assembly.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a ringand traveler assembly for use in a spinning and twisting frame thatincludes spaced ring members that receive a traveler membertherebetween.

Another object of the invention is to provide a. traveler member for usein a ring and traveler assembly that has a projecting portion that isreceived in a slot that is defined by spaced ring members, the travelermember being freely moveble with respect to the ring members as it isguided by the confines of the slot.

Still another object is to provide a ring, and traveler assembly havingspaced, ring members on which a. traveler member is mounted andincluding meansfor varying the spacing between the ring members so as toaccommodate various, size traveler members.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent as the description thereof proceeds when considered inconnection with the accompanying illustrative drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE. DRAWING FIG. 1 is a bottom perspective view of thering and traveler assembly embodied in the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along line 2-2 in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing the travelermember as mounted on the ring members illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

DESCRIPTION OF THE lNVENTlON Referring now to the drawing, the ring andtraveler assembly embodied in the present invention is generallyindicated at 10 and as shown has particular application in a spinning ortwisting frame a portion of which is indicated at 12. lt is understoodthat thering and traveler assembly 10 will encircle a bobbin or the likefrom which yarn or thread is removed for processing, the ring andtraveler assembly 10 providing for uniform tension of the thread as itis removed from the bobbin and further preventing kinking or unnaturaltwisting of the thread as it is removed from the bobbin.

ln contradistinction to the ring and traveler assemblies knownheretofore, the present invention includes a first or upper ring membergenerally indicated at 14 from which is spaced a second or lower ringmember generally indicated at 16. Although the axes of the upper andlower ring members 14 and 16 are illustrated as being vertical, it iscontemplated that the axes of the ring members may be disposed in ahorizontal direction or inclined with respect to the horizontal,depending upon the requirements of the spinning or twisting frame onwhich the ring members are mounted. As illustrated in FIG. 2, the upperand lower ring members 14 and 16 are located in coaxial relation, thelower ring member including a rear extension 18 that is a adapted to beattached to the frame 12 by means of bolts 20. As will be described, theupper ring member 14 is mounted for pivotal movement on the lower ringmember 16, the pivotal movement of the upper ring member enabling thespacing betweeru the ring members to be temporarily increased forinserting a traveler member in the assembly as will also be describedhereinafter.

The upper ring member 14 is defined by an annular ring portion 22 havingan upper flange 24 and a lower flange 26 integrally jointed thereto.Extending outwardly of the ring portion 22 is an annular reduced section27 to which an extension 28 is joined, a hole 30 being formed in theextension 28. Joined to the reduced section 27 diametrically opposite tothe extension 28 is an extension 32 to which a hinge element 34 isconnected by means of screw fasteners 36. The lower ring member 16 isdefined by a ring. portion 38 to which flanges 40 and- 42 are integrallyjoined. An annular reduced section 43 is joined to the ring portion 38and underlies the annular reduced section 27 to define an annularchannel 44. An extension 45 is joined to the section 43 and underliesthe extension 28 an opening 46 being formed in the extension 45 inaligned relation with respect to the opening30. As will be described, abolt 48 projects through the openings 30 and 46 and receives a wing nut50 on the threaded lower end thereof. A spring 52 is located insurrounding relation around the bolt 48 and is disposed between thelower end of the extension 45 and the wing nut 50. The extension 18 ofthe lower ring member 16 is joined integrally to the ring portion 348through the reduced section 43 and a hinge element 54 is connected tothe extension 18 by screw fasteners 56. A pin 58 integrallyinterconnects the hinge elements 34 and 54, thereby pivotally mountingthe upper ring member 14 with respect to lower ring member 16. i

The. upper ring. member 14 is spaced from the lower ring member 16 sothat the annular flanges 26 and 40 are spaced from each other to definea slot 60 therebetween. The slot 60 may be varied in vertical dimensionin order to accommodate various size traveler members, to be described,and in order to locate the ring members 14 and 16 in their spaced apartrelation a spacer member 62 is provided and is positioned between theextensions 28 and 45, as illustrated in FIG. 2. As further shown in FIG.2, the spacer member 62 as located between the extensions 28 and 45 ofthe ring members 14 and 16 respectively, receives the bolt 48 thereinand thus is retained in the position as illustrated for locating thering members 14 and 16 in their spaced apart relation so as to definethe spacing of the slot 60. It is understood that the spacing of theslot 60 may be varied by changing the spacer member 62 for a differentspacer member of either greater or smaller thickness.

In order to receive a yarn indicated at 64 in FIG. 3 from a bobbin, andfor guiding the yarn to a spinning or twisting frame for furtherprocessing, a traveler member generally indicated at 66 is provided andis adapted to be mounted for sliding movement around the ring members 14and 16. As illustrated in FIG. 3, the traveler member 66 is defined byan elongated portion 68 that terminates at the upper end in a hookportion 70 and to which a projecting portion 72 isjoined adjacent thelower end thereof to form a C-configuration therewith. The projectingportion is formed with flanges 74 and 76 that are adapted to be capturedbehind the flanges 26 and 40 of the ring members 14 and 16 and withinthe annular channel 44. The traveler member 66 may be formed of anydesirable material such as ceramic, glass, nylon, hard rubber, bakelite,boron or even of other materials of a brittle nature heretofore notsuitable or possible to use in the prior known traveler members.

In mounting of the traveler member 66 on the ring and traveler assembly,the upper ring member 14 is lifted with respect to the lower ring member16 and against the action of the spring 52. This movement enlarges theslot 60 and enables the projecting portion 72 of the traveler member 66to be received between the flanges 26 and 40 of the upper and lower ringmembers. The hooked portion 70 is placed over the upper flange 24 of thering member 14 and when the upper ring member 14 is released, the springmember 52 returns the ring member 14 to its normal position to lock theflanges 74 and 76 of the projecting portion 72 behind the flanges 26 and40 of the upper and lower ring members. With the hooked portion 70locked on the upper flange 24 of the upper ring member 14 the travelermember 66 is now mounted in place for sliding movement on the upper andlower ring members 14 and 16. It is seen that the flange 24 of the upperring member 14 and the flange 40 of the lower ring member 16 definetracks for carrying the traveler member 66 as it slides around the ringmembers in the operation thereof. As again seen in FIG. 3, the elongatedportion 68 of the traveler member adjacent to the hook portion 70 isformed with a concave inner area 78 that receives the yarn 64 therein.This provides sufficient space for the yarn to pass therethrough as thetraveler member 66 moves around the ring members 14 and 16.

It is seen that the tandem ring member assembly and traveler areadaptable for using either a fine denier or heavy denier yarn due tothat fact that the spacing between ring members 14 and 16 may be variedto receive relatively light and small dimensioned travelers for finedenier and relatively heavy and bulky travelers for heavy denier yarn.This change in spacing as heretofore described in accomplished bychanging the spacer member 62 between the ring members so as to changethe dimension of the slot 60 in order to properly receive the particulartraveler being used. Because of the manner of mounting of the travelermember 66 on the ring members, a heretofore known problem of thetraveler member flying off its spinner ring under centrifugal force iseliminated; and it is also seen that by providing for lifting of thering member 14 with respect to the ring member 16 through use of thespring 52, breaking or snapping of the traveler members when mounting inplace is avoided. For this reason various kinds of materials may beemployed in the construction of the traveler member, and it iscontemplated that relatively inexpensive materials ofa brittle naturemay be utilized in the manufacture of the traveler members. Because ofthe free movement of the traveler members with respect to the ringmembers as mounted therebetween, higher speeds of the traveler membermay be obtained, which results in higher operating efficiency of theequipment with lower costs resulting therefrom.

lclaim:

1. In a ring and traveler assembly for use in a spinning or twistingframe, a first ring member, a second ring member separable from andspaced with respect to said first ring member and located in coaxialrelation therewith, the spacing between said ring members defining anannular slot, a traveler member having a projecting portion that isreceived in said slot in free sliding relation, wherein said travelermember is fully movable with respect to said ring members, and means forsecuring said ring members in their spaced apart position and meanscooperating with said securing means for varying the spacing betweensaid ring members, thereby varying the dimension of said slot, each ofsaid ring members having an annular flange formed thereon, said flangesbeing spaced from each other to define said slot, the portion of saidtraveler member that projects into said slot having a flange formedthereon that has a dimension greater than that of the slot, wherein saidflange on said traveler member prevents withdrawal of said travelermember from between said ring members during movement thereof, saidtraveler member further including a hook portion that is received overthe flange of one of said ring members and cooperates with the flange onsaid traveler member to define gripping portions for retaining saidtraveler member in sliding position on the flange of said one ringmember.

2. In a ring and traveler assembly for use in a spinning or twistingframe, a first ring member, a second ring member separable from andspaced with respect to said first ring member and located in coaxialrelation therewith, the spacing between said ring members defining anannular slot, a traveler member having a projecting portion that isreceived in said slot in free sliding relation, wherein said travelermember is fully movable with respect to said ring members, and means forsecuring said ring members in their spaced apart position and meanscooperating with said securing means for varying the spacing betweensaid ring members, thereby varying the dimension of said slot, saidsecuring means including a fastener that extends through extensionsformed on said ring members, and resilient means located on saidfastener and providing for biased separation of said ring members forenlarging said slot wherein the projecting portion of said travelermember is more easily receivable in said slot for mounting said travelermember therein.

3. In a ring and traveler assembly as set forth in claim 2, one of saidring members being pivotal with respect to the other, and said fastenerbeing located diametrically opposite to the pivot axis of said ringmembers for normally securing said ring members against movement.

4. ln a ring and traveler assembly as set forth in claim 2, said mansfor varying the spacing between said ring members including a spacerelement that is located between said extensions and that receives saidfastener therethrough, said spacer element being interchangeable with aspacer element of different thickness to vary the spacing between saidring members.

5. In a traveler member for use in a ring and traveler assembly, anelongated vertically disposed body, a first projecting portion extendinginwardly from the top end of said body and having a depending hookportion at its extremity, a second projecting portion extending inwardlywith respect thereto, said first projecting portion and the upper sideof said second projecting portion cooperating to define a C-shapedconfiguration adapted to receive a first ring member therebetween, thelower side of said second projecting portion and the bottom portion ofsaid body cooperating to define an inverted Utshaped configurationadapted to receive the upper end of a second ring member mounted inspaced relation to the first ring member.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION at nt N 3,583,146Dated June 8 1971 lnventofls) Derrel V. Myers It is certified that errorappears in the above-identified patent and that said Letters Patent arehereby corrected as shown below:

On the cover sheet [73] "King Traveler C0." should read U. S. RingTraveler Co.

Signed and sealed this 16th day of May 1972.

(SEAL) Attest:

EDWARD M.FLETCHER,JR. ROBERT GOTTSCHALK Attesting Officer Commissionerof Patents FORM PO-IOSO (IO-69! u SCOMM-DC 6O376-PG9 & U 5 GOVERNMENTPRINTING OFFICE: 19.9 0-355-334

1. In a ring and traveler assembly for use in a spinning or twistingframe, a first ring member, a second ring member separable from andspaced with respect to said first ring member and located in coaxialrelation therewith, the spacing between said ring members defining anannular slot, a traveler member having a projecting portion that isreceived in said slot in free sliding relation, wherein said travelermember is fully movable with respect to said ring members, and means forsecuring said ring members in their spaced apart position and meanscooperating with said securing means for varying the spacing betweensaid ring members, thereby varying the dimension of said slot, each ofsaid ring members having an annular flange formed thereon, said flangesbeing spaced from each other to define said slot, the portion of saidtraveler member that projects into said slot having a flange formedthereon that has a dimension greater than that of the slot, wherein saidflange on said traveler member prevents withdrawal of said travelermember from between said ring members during movement thereof, saidtraveler member further including a hook portion that is received overthe flange of one of said ring members and cooperates with the flange onsaid traveler member to define gripping portions for retaining saidtraveler member in sliding position on the flange of said one ringmember.
 2. In a ring and traveler assembly for use in a spinning ortwisting frame, a first ring member, a second ring member separable fromand spaced with respect to said first ring member and located in coaxialrelation therewith, the spacing between said ring members defining anannular slot, a traveler member having a projecting portion that isreceived in said slot in free sliding relation, wherein said travelermember is fully movable with respect to said ring members, and means forsecuring said ring members in their spaced apart position and meanscooperating with said securing means for varying the spacing betweensaid ring members, thereby varying the dimension of said slot, saidsecuring means including a fastener that extends through extensionsformed on said ring members, and resilient means located on saidfastener and providing for biased separation of said ring members forenlarging said slot wherein the projecting portion of said tRavelermember is more easily receivable in said slot for mounting said travelermember therein.
 3. In a ring and traveler assembly as set forth in claim2, one of said ring members being pivotal with respect to the other, andsaid fastener being located diametrically opposite to the pivot axis ofsaid ring members for normally securing said ring members againstmovement.
 4. In a ring and traveler assembly as set forth in claim 2,said mans for varying the spacing between said ring members including aspacer element that is located between said extensions and that receivessaid fastener therethrough, said spacer element being interchangeablewith a spacer element of different thickness to vary the spacing betweensaid ring members.
 5. In a traveler member for use in a ring andtraveler assembly, an elongated vertically disposed body, a firstprojecting portion extending inwardly from the top end of said body andhaving a depending hook portion at its extremity, a second projectingportion extending inwardly with respect thereto, said first projectingportion and the upper side of said second projecting portion cooperatingto define a C-shaped configuration adapted to receive a first ringmember therebetween, the lower side of said second projecting portionand the bottom portion of said body cooperating to define an invertedU-shaped configuration adapted to receive the upper end of a second ringmember mounted in spaced relation to the first ring member.